Park Cities Historic Home Tour Features Full Restoration on Bryn Mawr

This 1936 Colonial revival on Bryn Mawr was taken to the studs and brought back to its former glory with the hard work and attention to detail from Pritchett – IV. It will be on the Park Cities Historic and Preservation Society Home Tour this weekend.

That’s what Patty and Price Pritchett have done with 3432 Bryn Mawr. They took a home that would have otherwise been considered a teardown and lovingly poured the resources into it to make it the stunning colonial revival it is today. It has such presence on the lot, with its stately columns and bright white facade. Inside, the home is cozy and refined, with gorgeous hardwood floors and custom fixtures.

Of course, if you’re feeling lucky, we’ll host a ticket giveaway tomorrow, so stay tuned for your chance to win!

The landing and staircase feature a custom brass-and-steel baluster, and the doors are all two-inch-thick mahogany.

CandysDirt.com: What room or design element of your home will stand out to home tour goers?

Price Pritchett: Our home at 3432 Bryn Mawr looks grand. Stately. But it’s actually sort of petite. In its day — 1936 — it was considered “big.” It’s how families used to live, but the scale inside (approx. 3,300 square feet) is small by today’s Park Cities standard. We chose not to expand the house, whereas a spec builder would surely add an east wing with probably an additional 3,000 feet.

Our preference was to keep the lot open and airy. No fencing! Even the landscaping is fairly minimalistic. So many homes in the area have overplanted landscaping that smothers the house. One reason people love this property so much is that it can breathe! The house itself is the star.

CD: Is there any feature or finish in your home that tour goers shouldn’t miss?

Pritchett: We made huge improvements in moldings and trim work, adding elegance but keeping it classic in style and honoring the home’s traditional look. We avoided trendy. Our focus was on details. The finish out is high end and will stand the test of time.

CD: If you had to choose one spot — inside or outside — on your property where you could spend all day, where would it be and why?

Pritchett: We use the whole house! (Interestingly, in the mid-90s we built a 13,000-square-foot home at 6700 Turtle Creek, now listed for $21 million. And in the early 2000s we built a 9,000-square-foot home at 3900 Gillon that sold for $8,000,000. We never used much of those houses!) The 3432 Bryn Mawr home “fits”!

CD: What are you doing to prepare for the home tour?

Pritchett: We’ve been trimming up the landscaping and doing some touch up painting, but that’s about it.

CD: What construction or renovation have you completed since you moved in? In what ways have you put your fingerprint on your home?

Pritchett:We completed all restoration/renovation/upgrading prior to move-in. Our fingerprints show mainly in the following ways:

1. Retaining the home’s footprint on the lot; no additional wing, etc.
2. Exquisite finish-out
3. Brass-and-steel stair balusters we custom designed and have used in other homes
4. Antique English marble fireplace mantle
5. Minimalistic landscaping
6. Classic art collection displayed in the home

The fireplace is an English marble antique selected and installed by the Pritchetts.

CD: Is there any history behind your home? Your neighborhood? Care to share?

Pritchett: The home was built in 1936 by Harris Eugene Yarborough, a real estate developer and home builder who constructed many homes in the Park Cities area. He, wife Mildred, and family were the first occupants. Yarborough, an active and civic-minded man, donated the land to build Park Cities Baptist Church. He also served as mayor of University Park from 1946 to 1950.

Yarborough died in 1957 and his son (Harris E. Yarborough, Jr.) took over the homebuilding business. The son died in January, 2007.

We do not have precise records of subsequent owners/occupants of 3432 Bryn Mawr. Word has it that the home later belonged to someone named Hamrick, who sold it to William Crockett Chears (d. 12/99) and his wife Carmen Chears (d. 11/12). They divorced, with the home becoming the property of Carmen Chears, who sold it to William A. (Bill) and Beverly Squibb in May, 1988.

After living in the home for close to 20 years, the Squibbs sold it to Andrew Stevens (movie producer and actor; son of movie star and Playboy Playmate Stella Stevens) in 2007. Stevens apparently looked at 3432 Bryn Mawr as an investment opportunity. He planned to demolish the house and garage, and had an architect develop plans for new construction. For some reason — perhaps the serious recession of 2008 — Stevens changed his mind and sought to sell the property. The house sat empty for quite some time and fell into disrepair.

Joanna England

If Executive Editor Joanna England could house hunt forever, she absolutely would. Instead she covers the North Texas housing market and the economy for CandysDirt.com. While she started out with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, Joanna's work has appeared in The Dallas Morning News as well as several local media outlets. When she's not knitting or hooping, or enjoying White Rock Lake, she's behind the lens of her camera. She lives in East Dallas with her husband, son, and their furry and feathered menagerie.

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Comments

I am the daughter of Dr. & Mrs. W. Crockett Chears and I grew up in this house. My parents purchased the home from the Hamrick family, who I believe purchased from Yarborough. It was sold to the Squibbs several years after I got out of college.
I currently live close by and pass it on a regular basis and had the opportunity to go in between owners and take a walk down memory lane.
Although I am elated that the house wasn’t torn down although I do dislike the whitewashed look of the bright white paint and the removal of the shutters. I much prefer the natural stone-colored original brick. Other than that I am thrilled that they chose to stay true to the original look of the home.